1. Field of the Invention
The dynamic color patterns of a liquid film are enlarged are reproduced on a screen for aesthetic appreciation. The device of this invention produces the film, magnifies and projects the light patterns, and automatically renews the film. Since the thickness of the liquid film suspended in the air varies from point to point over the surface, interesting and beautiful color patterns are produced. All the spectral colors plus purple, magneta, tan and brown are produced. Even black is subjectively experienced by the observer at places where the film becomes so thin that almost no reflection occurs. The average size of the various color regions is governed by the type of liquid used and the boundary conditions. An ordinary soap bubble has small color patterns. A suitable liquid film formed within a large loop developes much larger features. The color features in liquid film continually evolve in form and position during the life of the film due to the effects of gravity on the density gradients of the film. Air currents, thermal gradients, electric currents, and variations in surface tension also cause the patterns to change. This dynamic behavior, along with the brilliant and pastel colors, create a fascinating display when projected onto a screen. The lifetime of a liquid film in air in a sealed container can be from several minutes to several hours, depending on the type of liquid used. When the plane of a liquid film within a loop is vertical, the lifetime of the film is less than that when the plane of the film is horizontal, but the patterns are more active in the former case. The colors are usually of better quality in the upper portion of the vertical film.
2. Prior Art
Liquid films suspended in air are a natural choice as a source of color designs for a light display device. Ordinary electronic light display boxes have a limited number of colors and a limited number of patterns, and the sequence of patterns is usually governed by complex electronics. The device of this invention produces all the colors in an infinite variety of patterns, and the sequence of patterns is a continuous evolution from one design to the next--governed by the laws of nature acting on the thin liquid film.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,262,359, issued to V. J. Carpenter July 26, 1966, discloses a rear projection viewer comprising an object plane whereat an object is held to be projected onto a screen, said viewer further comprising a light source and a condenser aligned to illuminate said object, a projection lens system including a pair of positive lenses and a negative lens aligned therebetween constituting a beam displacer, said lens system being located to form an immobile image of said object on said screen which is optically conjugate to said object plane, a rotatable member which is mounted for rotation in a plane normal to the projection axis of said viewer and is located substantially concentrically of said axis, said beam displacer lens being held in said member eccentrically of said axis by a dimension less than the effective radius of said lens so as to function as a rotating beam displacer, whereby the image rays formed by said lens are focused at a stationary point on said screen while while rotating about said axis to eliminate scintillation of the screen.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,473,428, issued to Edward H. Phillips Oct. 21, 1969 discloses an electrical transducer connected with a sound reproducing system so as to produce pulsating movements in accorance with the sound of the system. A plurality of light-reflecting elements are supported by the transducer for movement relative thereto in response to the pulsating movements of the transducer. A source of light is beamed downwardly at an angle onto the reflecting surface. A template is positioned adjacent the source of light so that the light beam has a particular design which in turn is reflected onto the receiving surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,554,537, issued to Edward H. Phillips Jan. 12, 1971, discloses a source of light and a template having a plurality of shaped holes formed therethrough disposed adjacent the source of light. A control means is provided for selecting which one of the shaped holes of the template means is disposed adjacent the source of light. The light beam passing through the template means is adapted to impinge upon a plurality of reflecting lens means mounted on a movable support. Each of these reflecting means includes a curved optical surface for reflecting an image onto one or more surfaces. Each of the lenses includes means for determining the color reflected from the lens means. The lens means includes asymmetrical bodies which tend to cant the lens means for random orientation of the various individual reflecting lens means.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,738,036 issued to Edmund E. Landsinger June 12, 1973 discloses a disc having a thin chamber filled with immiscible fluids such as glycerine and air to form floating bubbles, the chamber having barriers or chamber regions of different thickness to provide a sudden change in movement of the bubbles. In one disc, several barriers extend partially across the chamber so that the bubbles slither around the barrier. In another disc, the chamber includes thick regions connected by narrow tubes so that the bubbles suddenly accelerate when they enter the thick regions.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,768,886, issued to Edward N. Sharpless Oct. 30, 1973, discloses a display device for presenting a visual indication of pressure, said device comprising a support capable of supporting a layer of liquid crystalline material thereon, said material having a characteristic of selective light scattering which is variable in accordance with applied deformational stress, and means for applying deformational stress to said material.